There is no intention to admit that the background art disclosed in this section legally constitutes prior art.
Currently, vegetables such as green onions are processed manually. The processing includes peeling away the foreskin or outer leaves from the stalk of the onion near its bulb for discarding it. Additionally, the roots of the onion are trimmed by cutting them off with suitable cutting blades.
In order to facilitate the processing of the green onions or other such vegetables, there have been attempts to automate the process. One such attempt utilized soft faced or spongy conveyor belts to move green onions one at a time to pairs of counter-rotating brushes. The onions were supported at one end in a horizontal disposition by the conveyor belts and at the other end by the rotating brushes in an attempt to remove the outer unwanted skins from the onions.
Another such attempt is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,989,110. This patent discloses conveyor belts for moving the green onions in a vertical disposition and rotating them about their vertical axes as they are being translated into engagement with oppositely rotating rollers or belts on either side of the green onions in an attempt to rip away the outer leaves or skins from the stems of the onions.